1. Short title, extent and commencement.—(1) This Act may be called the Marine Aids to
Navigation Act, 2021.
(2) It extends to the whole of India including the maritime zones of India as specified in the Territorial
Waters, Continental Shelf, Exclusive Economic Zone and Other Maritime Zones Act, 1976 (80 of 1976).
(3) It shall come into force on such date1
as the Central Government may, by notification in the
Official Gazette, appoint; and different dates may be appointed for different provisions of this Act and
any reference in any such provision to the commencement of this Act shall be construed as a reference to
the coming into force of that provision.
1. 31
ST March, 2022, vide notification No. S.O.1202(E), dated 17th March, 2022, see Gazette of India, Extraordinary, Part II, sec.
3 (ii).
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2. Definitions.— (1) In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) “accredited training organisation” means any organisation which is accredited by the Central
Government under section 20 ;
(b) “aid to navigation” means a device, system or service, external to vessels, designed and
operated to enhance safe and efficient navigation of individual vessels and vessel traffic, but shall not
be construed to include a reference to vessel traffic services, unless otherwise specified;
(c) “Director General” means the Director General of Aids to Navigation appointed under
section 4;
(d) “district” means an area demarcated as a district for the purposes of this Act under
sub-section (1) of section 4;
(e) “general aid to navigation” means any aid to navigation, which the Central Government may, by
notification in the Official Gazette, declare to be a general aid to navigation for the purposes of this
Act;
(f) “heritage lighthouse” means an aid to navigation designated as such under section 23;
(g) “local aid to navigation” means any aid to navigation which is not a general aid to navigation;
(h) “local authority” means a State Government or other person having superintendence and
management over a local aid to navigation;
(i) “marine aids to navigation dues” means the dues levied under section 24;
(j) “notification” means a notification published in the Official Gazette of India and the expression
“notify” with its grammatical variation and cognate expressions shall be construed accordingly;
(k) “owner” means the owner of a vessel including its registered owner, a person to whom a share
in the vessel belongs, bareboat charterer, manager and operator of the vessel;
(l) “port” means any port as defined in the Indian Ports Act, 1908 (15 of 1908);
(m) “prescribed” means prescribed by rules made under this Act;
(n) “proper officer” in relation to any functions to be performed under this Act, means the officer of
customs who is assigned those functions by the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs
constituted under the Central Boards of Revenue Act, 1963 (54 of 1963), and includes any person
appointed by the Central Government to discharge the functions of a proper officer under this Act;
(o) “rule” means rules made by the Central Government under this Act;
(p) “ship” includes a sailing vessel;
(q) “vessel” includes every description of water craft used or capable of being used in the marine
environment, such as ship, boat, sailing vessel, fishing vessel, submersible, semi-submersible,
hydrofoils, non-displacement crafts, amphibious crafts, wing-in-ground crafts, pleasure crafts, barges,
lighters, mobile offshore drilling units or mobile offshore units;
(r) “vessel traffic service” means a service implemented under this Act to improve the safety and
efficiency of vessel traffic and to protect the environment
(2) Words and expressions used but not defined in this Act, and defined in the Merchant Shipping Act,
1958 (44 of 1958), shall have the same meanings respectively assigned to them in that Act.